Apparatus for refining mineral oil by aluminum chloride



June 19, 1934. CARL 1,963,259

APPARATUS FOR REFINING MINERAL OIL BY ALUMINUM CHLORIDE Filed April 3.1931 4 Sheets-Sheet l ll l June 19, 1934. CARL 1,963,259

APPARATUS FOR REFINING MINERAL OIL BY ALUMINUM CHLORIDE Filed April 3,1931 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 1 1934- B. E. CARL 1,963,259

APPARATUS FOR REFINING MINERAL OIL BY ALUMINUM CHLORIDE Filed April 3,1931 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 B. E. CARL June 19, 1934.

APPARATUS FOR REFINING MINERAL OIL BY ALUMINUM CHLORIDE Filed April I5,1931 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented June 19, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT?OFFICE APPARATUS FOR REFINING MINERAL OIL BY CHLORIDE Byron E. Carl, NewYork, N. Y., assignor of onethird to Clarence G. Campbell, Pelham Manor,

Application April 3, 1931, Serial No. 527,486

8 Claims.

and the means for carrying out said steps as will be more fullyhereinafter pointed out.

As the use of crude petroleum oil has increased annually about tenpercent during the past twenty years or more and the demand for gasolineand other low boiling products have increased at a much greater rate ithas become more and more essential to secure the largest amount of highgrade low boiling products from petroleum oil.

Aluminum chloride has been found to be the best chemical agent orcatalyst for effecting the conversion of the largest proportion ofpetroleum oils into such low boiling products and insuring uniformproducts.

In the prior methods involving the use of aluminum chloride thevaporization of the aluminum chloride has proven to be a handicap inrestricting the operations as to temperatures.

This process while simple has solved these difiiculties and permits ofWider variations in tem perature and substantially prevents the passingoff from the refining chamber of the vapors of aluminum chloride therebyinsuring its complete utilization in the process. 4

Referring to the drawings Figure 1 is a perspective of my completedevice in the vertical form.

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the same showing the broken connection tothe condenser for convenience in illustration.

Figure 3 is a perspective of the condenser.

Figure 4 is a vertical section of Figure 1 with certain portions beingbroken away and for convenience in illustration.

Figure 5 is a top plan view of the interior of Figure 4.

Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view of one of the cutting beatingelements.

Figure '7 is a perspective of a horizontal embodiment of my inventionwith portions broken away for convenience and to show the interiorconstruction.

Figure 8 is a top plan View of a pair of the cutting beating elements.

Figure 9 is an end view of Figure 7 looking in from the left hand endwith the cover removed.

In the drawings 10 is a still or reaction chamber adapted to be set insuitable masonry not shown but in which shoulder members 11 are adaptedto be set in the usual manner so as to secure said still 10 rigidly inposition. A feed pipe connection 12 in which is mounted a hopper 13 isadapted to supply the necessary fresh dry petroleum oil and dry aluminumchloride to the still 10 as may be desired. The still 10 also has adrain pipe 14 and control valve 15 of usual con- 6 source of power notshown. The outer end of the shaft carrying the pulleys 22, cut gear 20worm gear 18 is supported by bracket 23.

A spider 24 having a hollow shaft 25 rigidly secured to the head of thesame at its upper end and has a worm gear 26 at its upper end adapted tomesh with the worm shaft 19 whereby said spider 24 is driven throughsaid shaft 25 and worm gear 26 by the worm shaft 19 and the lower end orsaid spider 24 is supported on a suitable pivotal bearing 24 which isrigidly secured to the bottom of the still 10. A shaft 2'7 is mounted inthe hollow shaft 25 there being a spacer or bearing member 28 betweenand said shaft 27 has a worm gear 29 at its upper end which meshes withthe worm shaft 18 and a cut gear 30 is rigidly secured to the lower endof said shaft 2'7 and cut gears 31 mesh with said gear 30 and cut gears32 mesh with said out gears 31 whereby shaft 33 being also rigidlysecured to the gear 30 is driven therewith and shafts 34, being rigidlysecured to the secured to the upper portions of shafts 33, 34 and V 35so as to rotate therewith and throw back into the mixture in 10 theheavier oil vapors and aluminum chloride vapors. A series of cutting,squeezing and tearing beater members 37 having flanges or cutting edges38 are rigidly mounted on the lower portions of the shafts 33, 34 and 35in such a manner that they are adapted to rotate with said shafts inopposite directions in such a way as to almost contact at their cuttingedges so as to squeeze and cut and tear apart the heavier petroleumportions that wrap themselves about the aluminum chloride andcontinuously thereby expose new surfaces of the oil to the aluminumchloride during the entire refining process.

A reflux column 39 which is here treated as a part of still 10 ismounted on a gas outlet 47 and is adapted to be secured to the still 10so as to draw off the vapors of the low boiling elements from the upperportion of the chamber of the still 10 and said column 39' is equippedwith the usual bafiie elements 40 common to the practice in this art tocatch and return the heavier portions of oil and aluminum chloride. Bymeans of pipe 41 a drop out box 42 of usual construction havinghorizontal elements 43 therein is adapted to catch. any of the highboiling oils or aluminum chloride which may pass over and by means of aseries of. pipe connections 44 drain such high boiling oils and aluminumchloride back into the still 10 at the point required, each bymeans ofthe usual pipe connections 45. The low boiling oils passing. through thedrop out box 42 will then pass into condenser 46 of usual and well'knownconstruction.

The preceding description refers primarily to thevertical type ofapparatus as is shown in Figures 1 to 6 inclusive, andFigures '7 and 9.show the adaptations of this same construction to a horizontal still;

V The essential difference in the horizontal still as-shown in Figures 7and 9 lies in the spider 24 being of. a four arm construction instead ofa three as inthe vertical-still and the fan propeller members 36 areeliminated and the squeezing and cutting and tearing beater members 37are extended throughout the entire length of the shafts -1.

,,In= carrying out my process dry. petroleum oil suitably heated to thedesired temperature is fed through the pipe 12 under the usual controlto the still 10 and thoroughly dry. aluminum chloride is;addedtothe'oilfed through the'pipe 12 by meansof hopper 13 in a ratio of- 2'to 10% of the; weight of the oil treated depending upon its character sothat the oil and aluminum chloride preferably enter the still 10 at ornear the base and the heat is. applied to the still 10 in theusualmanner at the-base to the necessary vaporizing temperature. Throughthe driving of pulleys 22, gear 20, worm shaft- 18, worm 29, shaft 27andgear 30 will bethereby. driven and gears31. will be driven'in theopposite direction fromgear 30. and gears 32 will be driven in the samedirection with gear 30 meshing with gears 31 whereby shafts 33., 34 and35-will be rotated asdescribed with their. adjacent gearssothat the fanpropeller members 36, are rotated therewith andthrow down the highboiling oils and aluminum. chloridevapors and the squeezing and cuttingandbearingbeater members 37 are also rotated therewithand in thedirections: of their particular. shafts. Atthe same timeagear 21 isdriveninthe opposite direction from 20 whereby Wormshaft 19 1s driveninthe opposite direction from. worm shaft 18 so that worm gear26 andthe, shaft 25carrying the spider. 24v are driven in the oppositedirection'from the shaft 27 and gear 3Q and. shaft 33with its memberscarried thereby. This results in the squeezing and cutting. and tearingbeater members 37 squeezing and cutting and tearing the high boilingoil, which becomes in certain portions a sticky sludge enveloping thealuminum chloride, so as to expose and re-expose the high boiling oilsto the actionof the aluminum chloride and the aluminum. chloride throughits catalytic actionand alsothrough the beating, squeezing and cuttingand tearing action of cutting and tearing beaters 37 will be thoroughlyvaporized and freed for action. The fan propeller members 36 being inthe upper portion of the still 10 will catch and throw down into themass being thus treated the aluminum chloride vapors and the vapors of"high. boiling oils so that substantially only the vapors of the lowboiling oils will pass off through-the reflux column 39 and most of thehigh boiling oils which may be carried into said column 39 will bebaffled out by the baffles 40 and the remaining high boiling oils whichpass into the drop out box 42 will all be baffled out by, bailies43 sothat such high boiling oils will either run down column 39 back intostill 10 or from the drop out box 42 will run back through pipeconnections 44 into the still 10 and be resubject'ed to the continuingoperation until all of the, low boiling oils are removed from thematerial in the still 10 and the remaining high boiling oils are drainedoff while hot in the sludges or residue with the unused aluminumchloride to settling tanks for further recovery treatment.

It is important-in thisprocess and shouldbe noted at this point thatbecause of the squeezing and cutting and tearing and beating elements 37combined with the fan propeller elements 36 and the functions performedby these, that the aluminum chloride even in its vapor formasdescribedin the carrying out of the process, will not pass from the still in anysubstantial. quantity but will-be held busily engaged in itscatalyticwork so long as there is petroleumoil in the still 10 for it tooperate upon in the processes described and the temperature of the dropout box 42. can safely run above 350 F. without the loss of aluminumchloride.

The low'boiling oilproducts produced by this processwillnot only besweet and free from all uncombinedchemical elements but will be of aslarge a proportion of the petroleumoil treated as can be obtainedtherefrom in the. use of aluminum chloride, running as highas eighty percent. of the petroleum oil treated.

I claim:

1. Incombination means for continuously exposing new surfaces ofhigher-boiling petroleum oils. to the action-of aluminum chloridewithout substantial loss by vaporization of aluminum chloride from thestill comprising a still having a rotating spider, mounted therein andaplurality'of series of squeezingand cutting and tearing apart beatersmounted in said spider in a manner suchthat adjacent pairs interrotatein oppositedirections, means for driving down high boiling oil andaluminum chloride vapors into the mixture, heating means and means forcondensingthevapors of lower boiling oils formed.

2. In combination means for continuously'exposing, new surfaces ofhigher boiling petroleum oils to the action of aluminum chloridecomprising cutting and squeezing and tearing apart 'beaters amounted soas to interrotate in pairs in opposite directions in a still, means fordriving back into the mixture high boiling oil and aluminum chloridevapors, heating means and means for condensing the vapors of lowerboiling oils formed.

3-. In combination means for continuously holding aluminum chloride inoperative contact with high boiling petroleum oils, comprising a stillhaving a rotating spider mounted therein and a plurality of series ofcutting apart and squeezing beaters mounted in said spider in. a

manner such that adjacent pairs interrotate in opposite directions,means for returning high boiling oil and aluminum chloride vapors to themixture, heating means and means for condensing the low boiling oilsformed thereby.

4. In combination means for continuously holding aluminum chloride inoperative contact with high boiling petroleum oils, comprisingsqueezing, tearing apart and cutting heaters mounted so as tointerrotate through interlocking gears in opposite directions in astill, fans mounted on the shafts with said tearing heaters and drivingthe heavier vapors downward, heating means and means for condensing thelow boiling oils formed thereby.

5. In combination means for continuously exposing new surfaces of higherboiling petroleum oils to the action of aluminum chloride comprising astill having a rotating spider mounted therein and a plurality of seriesof queezing and tearing apart heaters mounted in said spider in a mannersuch that adjacent pairs interrotate in opposite directions, a pluralityof a series of downward driving fan propeller members mounted on thesame shafts above said squeezing and cutting heaters, heating means andmeans for condensing the vapors of lower boiling oils formed.

6. In combination means for continuously exposing new surfaces of higherboiling petroleum oils to the action of aluminum chloride comprisingsqueezing and cutting apart heaters mounted so as to interrotate throughinterlocking gears in opposite directions in a still, a plurality of aseries of downward driving fan propeller members mounted on the sameshafts above said squeezing and cutting heaters, heating means and meansfor condensing the vapors of lower boiling oils formed.

'7. In combination means for continuously holding aluminum chloride inoperative contact with high boiling petroluem oils, comprising a stillhaving a rotating spider mounted therein and a plurality of series ofsqueezing and tearing apart heaters mounted in said spider in a mannersuch that adjacent pairs interrotate in opposite directions, a pluralityof a series of downward driving fan propeller members mounted on thesame shafts above said squeezing and cutting heaters, heating means andmeans for condensing the low boiling oils formed thereby.

8. In combination means for continuously holding aluminum chloride inoperative contact with high boiling petroleum oils, comprising squeezingand tearing apart heaters mounted so as to interrotate throughinterlocking gears in opposite directions in a still, a plurality of aseries of downward driving fan propeller members mounted on the sameshafts above said squeezing and tearing heaters, heating means and meansfor condensing the low boiling oils formed thereby.

BYRON E. CARL.

